Part 32 (1/2)
”Sit in this folding-chair I a; you will look through the opening, which answers to one of the false s 's apart as at the sight of an ene?”
”He seems to wish some man to sit down close to him”
”M Fouquet?”
”No, no; wait a moment--”
”Look at the notes and the portraits,wishes to sit down in his presence is M
Colbert”
”Colbert sit down in the king's presence!” exclaimed Aramis ”It is ih the opening in the flooring ”Yes,” he said
”Colbert hi to hear--and what can result froood for M Fouquet, at all events”
The prince did not deceive himself
We have seen that Louis XIV had sent for Colbert, and Colbert had arrived The conversation began between thehest favors that he had ever done; it was true the king was alone with his subject ”Colbert,” said he, ”sit down”
The intendant, overcoht, for he feared he was about to be dismissed, refused this unprecedented honor
”Does he accept?” said Ara”
”Let us listen, then” And the future king and the future pope listened eagerly to the simple mortals they held under their feet, ready to crush the, ”you have annoyed ood; I like that answer Yes, you knew it, and there was courage in the doing of it”
”I ran the risk of displeasing your majesty, but I risked, also, the concealment of your best interests”
”What! you were afraid of so on _ ive their sovereigns such banquets as the one of to-day, unless it be to stifle the” Colbert awaited the effect this coarse jest would produce upon the king; and Louis XIV, as the vainest and the ave Colbert the joke
”The truth is,” he said, ”that M Fouquet has given et all the money required for this enormous expenditure,--can you tell?”
”Yes, I do know, sire”
”Will you be able to prove it with tolerable certainty?”